GUEST SPEAKER: ADAM COHEN

Adam Cohen is a Designer, Stand-Up Comedian, Visual Artist, and much more. He is a multitasking genius. In fact, I asked him how he kept his life so organized. He referred me to a bullet journal, and after using it for a few days I see how handy it is! The Bullet journal collects all your notes, events, tasks, long term goals, and other miscellaneous information. He said being organized is one of the most important things used to become and then stay successful.

He also talked about considering to work with a corporation or a long-standing business first instead of jumping right into trying to be a freelance designer and make a living. This way, he said, I would be able to observe the tips and tricks that company used to stay successful. This would also give you the opportunity to build up your professional portfolio without having to take on the full blame if something were to go wrong.This leads to another point he made. Once you decide to open your own business, you need to open a separate bank account for any transactions involving the company. You can manage these funds with QuickBooks, Harvest, or any other money managing software. Each software has tons of resources online to help you figure it out. Having a separate bank account from your personal account could also protect you from getting all your money stolen. If you come into legal trouble and get sued for some reason they can take all the company money but none of your personal money or assets would be included in that.

Just as everyone has told me time and time again, networking is your best friend. Adam touched on the topic a little. He mentioned that some of the jobs or opportunities he has come across were simply possible because of the people he knew. As much as I don’t want to say it. Success is a popularity contest, mixed with whether you’re talented or not, and your professionalism skills when you need it. As Adam suggested, I think I’m going start going to different clubs and events and introduce myself and what I do to become a little more recognized. Hopefully getting out there more could lead to some great job opportunities or even a few small ones, anything is better than nothing.Adam mentioned the importance of staying updated and relevant on social media and online at websites or portfolios. You should be posting at least 2-3 times week on your business profiles. This keeps you in the public eye and helps tracks the progress you continually make. This of course will bring in new customers as well depending on how large your following is.In all, having Adam Cohen come in and talk to us was very informative. I enjoyed talking to him because he was down to earth yet incredibly experienced. It was a quick talk since not everyone had much to ask him, but I learned a lot.